1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vertically separate type sheet postprocessing apparatus wherein a driver unit and a clincher unit are separated from each other.
2. Description of the Related Art
Sheet postprocessing apparatus are generally adapted to bend a foremost one of staples formed in sheet into a gate shape and to drive out the foremost staple. The staples formed in sheet (hereinafter referred as xe2x80x9cstaple sheetxe2x80x9d) are composed of connected straight staples to be a form of a sheet. Among such sheet postprocessing apparatus, there are the following conventional types. One type includes a forming/driving portion for forming and driving out the staple, and a clincher portion for bending the driven staple. In this type, the forming/driving portion and the clincher portion are pivotally coupled together at one end. In another type, a forming/driving portion and a clincher portion are vertically separated from each other in order to provide an opening therebetween. In the case of such a vertically separate type sheet postprocessing apparatus, it is possible to feed a material to be stapled from one side and to retrieve it from the opposite side because the material to be stapled can be passed through the space between the forming/driving portion and the clincher portion, which has the stapling work speedily done. Moreover, the advantage in this case is that a material can be stapled at its intermediate portion.
Notwithstanding, because a driving source is needed to drive a forming plate and a driver in a forming/driving portion and another driving source is also needed to drive a movable clincher in a clincher portion, driving motors have been mounted in the forming/driving portion and the clincher portion respectively in the conventional separate type sheet postprocessing apparatus as disclosed in JP-A-6-63342U.
However, mounting the driving motors respectively in the forming/driving and clincher portions results in making wiring for exchanging signals by connecting upper and lower cables complicated and also making the structure complicated as the forming/driving portion has to be moved. Consequently, the problem is that not only an increase in costs but also trouble will be brought about.
An object of the present invention intended to solve the foregoing problems is to provide a vertically separate type sheet postprocessing apparatus capable of performing a stapling operation with one driving source.
In order to solve the problems above, a vertically separate type sheet postprocessing apparatus according to the invention comprises a magazine unit having a driver which is vertically movable relative to a magazine for storing staple sheets, each of the staple sheets being formed by connecting straight staples together in the form of a sheet, and a clincher unit having a clincher holder, a driving mechanism for vertically moving the clincher holder, and a driving source of the driving mechanism, the magazine unit and the clincher unit being disposed vertically opposite to each other, and is characterized by
receiving a material to be stapled between the magazine unit and the clincher unit and moving the clincher holder of the clincher unit closer to the magazine unit by using the driving source so that a staple may be passed through the material and bent.